STRELNA, May 24. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin has highlighted the record level of cooperation between Russia and China during his meeting with Chinese Vice President Wang Qishan.
"The cooperation between China and Russia has reached an unprecedentedly high level of quality," the Russian leader said, especially noting Wang Qishan’s contribution. Putin congratulated the Chinese official on his recent appointment as vice president of the People’s Republic of China.
The Russian president thanked Qishan and the Chinese delegation of nearly 200 people for participating in the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum. According to him, this is one of the largest delegations to the forum. "It is only natural, because China is Russia’s largest trade and economic partner," the president pointed out.
Putin also expressed his gratitude to Chinese President Xi Jinping for organizing the Chinese delegation’s visit to St. Petersburg, and sent the Chinese leader his best wishes.
The Chinese vice president also conveyed words of greeting from Xi Jinping to the Russian leader. He concurred with Putin’s estimation of the level of cooperation between both countries, noting that their relations "continue to develop dynamically and have reached a new, unprecedentedly high level." The Chinese official noted the close economic cooperation between both countries, namely in the sphere of energy. Russia and China also collaborate in the sphere of humanities and politics.
According to Qishan, Chinese-Russian relations have an effect "not only on the Eurasian region, but on the entire world." However, he stressed that the countries face "not only opportunities, but also many challenges, risks and uncertainties.".